As technology evolves, your business needs to maintain its edge by taking advantage of it. However, some technology can be expensive to maintain, repair, or purchase. You may have heard of cloud migration while searching for a solution to this problem.
What is cloud migration? You'll use this process to upload your digital assets so you can fully benefit from technology without paying for an expensive IT setup.
This blog will explore the cloud migration process, its benefits, potential challenges, and how a step-by-step guide can help circumvent them. Let’s move on!
What Is Cloud Migration?
Cloud migration is a process through which you transfer your digital assets to a cloud provider's storage. In particular, you can migrate data, software, and infrastructure. Usually, it involves moving your assets from your servers or computers to the cloud.
You can also transfer this data from one cloud service to another. Furthermore, these third-party providers offer additional services, such as software tools to manage your data.
The Types of Migration to Cloud Infrastructure
When migrating to cloud infrastructure, there are several approaches you can take, each suited to different needs and circumstances:
1. Full Migration
Full or datacenter migration refers to transferring all of your digital assets to the provider's storage. If your business has few digital assets, you can upload them all via an internet connection. Otherwise, you may have to send this data physically, such as on a hard disc.
2. Hybrid Migration
Another migration type is the hybrid version. This partial migration allows you to keep part of your system as is. In addition, your business could use cloud storage as a backup for your physical servers. Alternatively, you may require this type of migration if your business is subject to certain regulations that limit or dictate how you store and secure your digital assets.
3. Cloud-to-Cloud Migration
If a cloud service provider already hosts some or all of your digital assets, you can transfer them to another provider with this type of migration. When you use this type of migration, you gain the advantage of leveraging a variety of packages offering different services to reduce your expenses. Alternatively, you may require this migration if you merge businesses and your previously separate entities used different providers.
4. Workload Migration
Lastly, you can migrate specific workloads, including digital assets such as a database or an application. This is especially beneficial if your business only needs certain processes or services that are available from anywhere.
The Strategies of the Cloud Migration Process
When you choose to undergo the migration process, you'll have to select strategies that fit your needs and will lead to the outcome you desire. Look at the table below for the main strategies you can utilize to migrate your digital assets:
Migration Strategy | Explanation |
|---|---|
Rehosting | This strategy involves little to no adjustments to the digital assets to make them function on the cloud platform. |
Relocating | With this strategy, you upload your digital assets to the cloud and then transition them using cloud services. |
Refactoring | This strategy requires you first to recreate your applications to function once you upload them on the cloud platform. |
Replatforming | You can use this strategy if your applications don't need as much adjustment as refactoring. |
Repurchasing | This strategy involves replacing the software you used with a cloud version. |
Retiring | When your digital assets are no longer needed or up-to-date, you can use this strategy and abandon them. |
The Benefits of Cloud Migration
Choosing the right strategies in your migration will lead to a smooth transition and the following benefits:
Reduced Cost
The main benefit you'll experience with this process is a cost reduction. When you migrate to a cloud service, you'll eliminate the need to purchase, store, and maintain some equipment. Furthermore, these services allow you to only pay for what you plan to use, eliminating the waste of underused servers. According to reports, this process raises or sustains the revenue of 60% of businesses.
Moreover, cloud services reduce downtime since these providers can quickly repair any issue. Therefore, you can return to normal operations quickly and lose less money than if you had to hire an external expert and wait for them to repair your equipment.
Enhanced Flexibility
This process also gives you the advantage of flexibility. As your business moves to a cloud platform, you'll have more freedom to change the organization of your digital systems. These cloud service providers have the equipment and software to facilitate these changes. Meanwhile, if you want to change your system or start a new, short-term project without cloud services, you may have to make a large, long-term investment in equipment.
Increased Scalability
One of the cloud migration benefits is that cloud service providers offer packages of different sizes. Therefore, when your business grows, you can be sure that there are providers who can scale their services to your needs. For instance, if you migrated your clothing retail shop's inventory to one branch, you could easily extend the process to the rest of your branches.
Optimized Infrastructure
This process is an advantage to your business because it optimizes your infrastructure. Whether you choose to fully or partially migrate, the cloud service provider will manage their storage to ensure minimal waste. Meanwhile, if you use your own storage space, you'll waste any equipment you don't use.
Moreover, the migration process encourages the modernization of data and applications, ensuring that your digital assets remain optimal.
Improved Security
Finally, when your business undergoes this process, these service providers will protect your data. They have professionals with experience and training in cyber security. Moreover, they're familiar with industry standards and regulations.
The Challenges of Migrating to the Cloud
Though this migration process brings many benefits, you'll need to circumvent the following challenges:
Requires a Clear Strategy
The first challenge is that it requires a clear yet comprehensive strategy – especially for medium and larger businesses. Without this strategy, you may waste capital transferring digital assets you don't need, implement an inefficient infrastructure, or select an insufficient security package.
Nonetheless, you can rely on third-party service providers for consultation or manage the process. These experts will also be able to sort out your technical challenges.
Causes Short-Term Downtime
The second challenge you're likely to face is downtime while you're going through the process. Since you'll need staff dedicated to this process and some equipment may not be available while transferring data, downtime will likely occur. Yet, you can mitigate this by scheduling your migration process outside of your usual operational hours.
Requires End User Training
The last challenge you'll manage is training your employees to use the new system. If you keep the applications unchanged, you can reduce the training. Yet even if you choose to change your system completely, you should consider that the efficiency of this new system will more than makeup for it. For instance, according to reports, Coca-Cola reduced its employees' need for an IT help desk by 80% when the company migrated its system.
How to Migrate to the Cloud
Now that you understand the benefits and how to manage its risks, let's examine how you can effectively transition to a cloud platform.
1. Assess Your Needs
To begin migrating your digital assets, you must assess your needs. In particular, you need to define what problem your business faces that this process could resolve. You could also consider your current state and how your business could grow using this process.
2. Plan Your Migration
After you've assessed your needs, you should plan how you'll implement this process, which strategies you'll use, and the outcomes you expect. In particular, you should ask yourself the following questions:
Which digital assets do you wish to transfer?
Which digital assets require adjusting/replacing/abandoning?
How will you transfer your digital assets?
Who is responsible for each part of the process?
What are the milestones and schedule of your process?
How will you design the new infrastructure?
How much will this process cost?
What outcomes/goals do you expect to reach?
Which technical requirements do you need to meet to complete this process?
How will you protect your digital assets?
3. Prepare for Your Migration
After you've created a plan, you should prepare for the migration. In this cloud migration step, you may need to train end users to recreate or alter applications and test them on the cloud platform.
4. Migrate Your Assets
Now that you've prepared for your migration, you should move your digital assets to the platform and implement the security portion of your plan.
5. Optimize Your Cloud Assets
Finally, you can optimize the digital assets you uploaded to the cloud. For instance, you could adjust applications to function better based on end-user feedback.
How Divelement Can Help Your Business Migrate to the Cloud
To ensure a seamless transition from on-premises equipment to more efficient cloud services, you can rely on the support of Divelement's software professionals. Their cloud service experts will help you stage the migration. Moreover, their professionals have the skills to respond to end users' issues swiftly, ensuring a smooth transition.
By outsourcing cloud migration from a nearshore company like Divelement, you'll benefit from their fairer prices. Moreover, you can rely on their high-quality services from years of working with USA companies.
Now you know that cloud migration optimizes your technology infrastructure by moving your digital assets to a cloud platform. This process frees your capital from equipment investments and lets you reduce costs by only paying for the cloud infrastructure you need.
Though this migration process is simple, it has challenges. Therefore, you must plan your migration and choose the right strategies carefully. For an efficient transition, you can consult with the best software development service providers, such as Divelement, and they will help you accomplish this migration process.